Study: Majority of Americans now favor legalizing marijuana

For the first time in four decades of polling, a majority of Americans now favor legalizing marijuana, according to a survey released today by the Pew Research Center.

The center found that 52 percent of 1,501 adults surveyed last month favor legalization, up 11 percentage points since 2010.

The increase "suggests that some of this change is relatively recent," said Carroll Doherty, associate director of the Washington-based Pew Research Center.

The survey found that 65 percent of people between ages 18 and 32 favor legalizing marijuana, up from 36 percent in 2008.

There has also been a change among the Baby Boomer generation - half now support legalization, up from 24 percent in 1996.

Generation X, those born between 1965 and 1980, favor legalization by 54 percent, and support among the Silent Generation, those born between 1925 and 1942, has jumped from 17 percent to 32 percent since 2002, according to the survey.

The survey validates the beliefs of the Drug Policy Alliance, which means ending marijuana prohibition is not just a mainstream issue but a reform that will occur, said Stephen Gutwillig, deputy executive director of programs for the Los Angeles-based group.

"This is going to happen, and it is a question of how and how quickly," Gutwillig said.

A Field Poll released in February found that 54 percent of Californians were in favor of legalizing marijuana.

California is one of the key states the pro-marijuana movement is eyeing for a ballot initiative during the 2016 presidential election, Gutwillig said.

"That decision hasn't been made yet," he said, "but there's obvious advantages to concentrating on a win in California to capitalize on the momentum and to address the level of support that already exists here."

Voters in Colorado and Washington state legalized the use of marijuana during the November election.

"There's definitely going to be more activity on the part of marijuana advocates," said Jack Pitney, a politics and government professor at Claremont McKenna College. "They're going to take this as a sign that the wind is at their back. "

Initiatives proposed during a mid-term election face an older electorate as opposed to younger voters who lean in favor of legalization, Pitney said.

Passage of an initiative legalizing marijuana also depends on the wording of the measure and the amount of resources proponents have to get their message out to voters, he said.

A large part of the Pew survey includes Americans' views on enforcement of marijuana laws on both the federal and state level.

About 72 percent of those polled say efforts by the government to enforce marijuana laws cost more than they're worth, according to the survey.

About 60 percent say the federal government should not enforce federal laws prohibiting the use of marijuana in states where it is legal.

Doherty said that not only have the views of marijuana changed, but there is agreement among people of different political persuasions.

Of the people surveyed, 78 percent of independents, 71 percent of Democrats and 67 percent of Republicans agree government enforcement of marijuana laws cost more than they're worth.

About 64 percent of independents, 59 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of Republicans are opposed to the federal government enforcing marijuana laws in states where it's legal.

"These issues tend to get viewed through a red/blue prism," Doherty said. "There's a conservative/liberal tension. In this case, there seems to be agreement that it's just not worth the resources. "

Pitney said limiting the role of the federal government is a conservative value.